


Quest

by frequencyshift



Category: Frozen (2013)
Genre: Alternate Ending, Angst, Dark Crack, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-15
Updated: 2014-02-15
Packaged: 2018-01-12 12:45:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1186350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frequencyshift/pseuds/frequencyshift
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Once upon a time, there was an evil princess. She lived in isolation with her sister, an innocent young girl who had no knowledge of the princess' wicked ways. While no proof was given, it was said this evil princess had killed her parents, so that she might assume the throne. While the council was able to put her off for three years, eventually the day came.</i>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>  <i>The princess was crowned Queen Elsa of Arendelle.</i></p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Mama," the boy murmured, shifting while still mostly asleep. "I'm gonna go there and save them, someday."</p>
<p>A slight frown creased the duchess' face. "Hans," she said softly. "Whatever do you mean?"</p>
<p>"Save Arendelle from the Evil Queen," Hans replied.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Quest

"Mama, mama, tell me again!"

The duchess sighed, settling on the edge of the bed as she pulled the covers up over the young boy. "Hans, my darling, surely you're tired of it by now. Don't you want to hear of Beowulf? Or Thor?"

The young boy shook his head fiercely. "No! I wanna hear about my uncle, and the evil witch!"

The duchess winced. "You know I don't like that term," she scolded gently. "What do we say instead?"

Hans huffed, rolling his eyes. "Sorceress, mama."

She reached out, ruffling her fingers through his soft auburn hair. "That's right," she said with a smile.

He looked up at her hopefully.

"Oh, alright," the duchess said, resigning herself to telling the same story that had enchanted the young boy for the past six months. "Let me tell you about your Uncle Hans. Once upon a time…"

_Once upon a time, there was an evil princess. She lived in isolation with her sister, an innocent young girl who had no knowledge of the princess' wicked ways. While no proof was given, it was said this evil princess had killed her parents, so that she might assume the throne. While the council was able to put her off for three years, eventually the day came._

_The princess was crowned Queen Elsa of Arendelle._

_Your uncle, Prince Hans, was present the day of the coronation, and he fell in love with the queen's sister, Princess Anna. It was True Love, the kind only found in storybooks, and so rare they knew they had to grasp it._

_But Queen Elsa was wicked, and twisted. She wanted only to control her subjects, and knew that if Prince Hans married the good Princess Anna, they would soon work to help the people of Arendelle. Wanting only misery and despair, she forbade their wedding, and attempted to kill them. When that failed, she fled, so as to gather her powers._

_For Queen Elsa was not only an Evil Queen, she was a Sorceress. She controlled ice and snow, and used it to hurt everyone around her._

_Princess Anna was good, and kind hearted, and could not understand that her sister would do such a thing. So she left to find her sister, to try and reason with her._

_Prince Hans followed the brave but foolish princess, but when he arrived Anna was nowhere to be found. So he captured the Queen, and brought her back to the kingdom to face justice._

_The Queen recognized that Prince Hans had a good heart, just like her sister, and tried to manipulate him. She begged for release, asking for her sister. Prince Hans, in his kindness, set about doing what she asked._

_But Princess Anna had finally returned to the castle, grievously wounded. Her sister had thrust her magic into the Princess, freezing her heart. Prince Hans tried to save her, but it was too late, and the Princess perished. However, before she drew her last breath, a priest was summoned to wed them, so that in the afterlife they could be reunited._

_The Evil Queen tried to escape, but Prince Hans chased her down. He fought her evil sorcery with all his might, but she proved too strong, and struck him down._

_As she did, her evil magic descended, sinking the entire kingdom into a furious blizzard that has yet to stop to this day. The people of Arendelle have fled, spreading throughout the rest of the world, bringing news of the downfall of their kingdom by the Evil Queen._

_Queen Elsa reigns there still, they say, ruling a land of frozen souls and hearts._

The duchess smiles softly at her sleeping child, his face still holding a bit of the excitement leftover from hearing his favorite bedtime story. She got to her feet, and leaned over to kiss his forehead. "Goodnight, sweetling," she said softly.

"Mama," the boy murmured, shifting while still mostly asleep. "I'm gonna go there and save them, someday."

A slight frown creased the duchess' face. "Hans," she said softly. "Whatever do you mean?"

"Save Arendelle from the Evil Queen," Hans replied, and with that he was gone.

After a moment, his mother left. The boy was only six, he certainly would grow out of these fancies. Still, her heart wouldn't seem to stop aching.

\---

The storm raged outside, and the lordling bounced on his feet, begging and pleading with the stern man in front of him.

"Father, please? It's perfect! I can practice."

"Hans," Duke Allard said sternly. "You can't be serious. To camp in the snow?"

The young man, not quite old enough to have fuzz on his chin, nodded eagerly. "It's perfect training, Father. For when I leave."

The duke sighed, one hand coming up to rub his temple. The idea to name his fourth son after his recently deceased brother had seemed like such a good idea at the time. If he had known what flights of fancy it would have resulted in, he would have gone with Roderick like originally planned.

"You're almost a man, Hans. When are you going to grow out of this ridiculous fantasy of yours? Arendelle has been frozen for nigh on 13 years, now. A little camping in the snow isn't going to help you there."

To the duke's surprise, Hans quiets down. The boy, for that's what he still is, looked down, scuffing his boot against the floor. "I'm fourth in line for your title, Father," Hans said seriously. "And I'm so far from the throne it's laughable. I'm not good at math, or science, and I like girls too much to want to be a priest like Edwin." He looked up then, fixing his father with a steely gaze. "But I'm good at hunting, and the rangers say I'm a natural at all the survivalist stuff. The swordsmaster isn't too embarrassed of me, either." Hans shrugged. "It's like I'm the perfect person to go to Arendelle. If I free it, then we can claim it, too, and I'll be remembered."

It was the same fault that had plagued his namesake, the ambition to rule. Hans was too inexperienced to realize that's what burned in him, but Duke Allard saw it. It made him sad, and proud.

"Promise me you'll come inside if it gets too cold? Your mother will worry all night otherwise."

"I won't get cold," Hans said with a grin, realizing his father was capitulating. "It doesn't really bother me."

\---

His 18th birthday was a somber affair. The commoners celebrated in high style, alcohol flowing free as the people toasted to the health of the duke's son.

It was a different story amongst his family. The duchess kept bursting into tears, failing to hide them behind a sodden handkerchief. It got noticeably worse every time Hans was presented with a gift. His older brothers got him winter gear. His sister, a custom ice pick. The duchess herself gave him an intricate pack, with so many pockets it seemed to be made of nothing else.

The duchess' wails rang through the dining hall when the duke presented his son with a sword. "Dear," he scolded gently, which did absolutely nothing to assuage her hysterics. Deciding it was a lost cause, he turned to his youngest son. "This sword belonged to your Grand Uncle Gregor, when he fought in the Uprising to place your great grandfather on the throne. It served him well, and has been passed through the family to those we deem in need of its luck."

Hans reverently drew the weapon. It wasn't the prettiest of weapons, the burnished steel obviously for use and not for show. The seal of the crown was on the hilt, however, and the handgrip was intricately tooled leather of his family's crest - a recent addition, by the faint smell of tanning solution that clung to it.

"Thank you, Father," Hans said, buckling the sword to his side.

"I've also provided for your transportation to the nearest port to Arendelle," the duke added. "As well as a promise of twice the amount to whichever captain brings you home - of your own free will."

At that, the young man actually leaned forward and gave his father a fierce hug.

\---

The wind was howling fiercely as the tavern door slammed open. The few patrons inside shot the newcomer a dark look as he struggled to cut off the biting wind, but once the elements were safely shut out they went back to their cups.

The barkeep motioned to the tavern girl, who stepped forward to help the traveler divest himself of numerous layers. "Thanks," Hans said, once his face was free of the ice-caked scarf. "I'll need a room, and whatever you've got in the pots."

He paid the price without complaint, and was soon seated by the fireplace, a palatable stew and mug of ale set before him. He dug in quickly, inhaling the food as if he had seen none for days. The tenseness slowly left his body as the feeling returned to his extremities, and after securing another mug he settled back to enjoy the warmth of the tavern common room.

"Don't see many travelers up this way," the barkeep said, making his rounds to ensure all his customers were well. "Too many storms, what with us so close to the Kingdom."

"I'm just grateful to have found an inn at all," Hans replied congenially, rolling his shoulders slightly. "I had to build myself a den in the snow last night."

The man whistled. "Wouldn't have pegged you as someone who knew what's what about snow, ser. Although," he mused, tilting his head slightly. "You did come in right geared up, didn't you."

"I prepared well." Hans tapped a finger against the side of his mug. "Tell me, what do you know of the Arendelle? I've only stories to go by."

The barkeep pulled up a chair, settling down with the young man. "Names Micah," he said, extending a hand.

"Hans," he replied, grasping the proffered limb with his own.

"I was born in Arendelle," Micah said. "My family had lived in the township for generations. I was even present the day of the coronation. Boy was I a handful at that age - didn't even want to wear my nice clothes." He laughed. "I was asleep when it all went down, much too young and common to attend a fancy ball. But I remember the winter. It wasn't fierce, then. Just cold, and snow, and everyone doing what they could to stay alive."

"Do you remember what happened then?" Hans asked, excited. This was the first time he'd heard the tale from someone outside of the Southern Isles.

"My father was a palace guard. He told me, when he came home." Micah's face darkened. "The tales are all confusing, so many versions. He was there, though, when Queen Elsa finally lost control. _Truly_ lost control. I guess seeing her sister freeze before her eyes was too much for her to bear."

Hans wrinkled his brow in confusion. "I though Princess Anna died in the castle, with Un- uh, Prince Hans."

At that, the barkeep scowled. "I don't care what they tell in other lands, but it wasn't like that. Princess Anna was on the ice that day. She stepped in between the queen and the prince."

It was the lordling's turn to frown. "To protect him?" It made no sense that he wouldn't have heard she died then, but then again, stories do get muddled.

"No," Micah replied, shaking his head. "To protect the queen. Prince Hans was about to kill her when Princess Anna stepped in. She froze right then, and stopped his blade. It was after Queen Elsa realized what happened that she…" he coughed, then. "Well. They weren't lying about her killing the prince."

It didn't make sense. Then again, perhaps it did. The stories told of Princess Anna having too much faith in her sister, wanting to save her. That the princess still froze only confirmed that Queen Elsa was responsible for her death.

"After that, the storm got worse," Micah continued. "No one knew what to expect when the golem's arrived, but they started herding people out of the Kingdom. I remember being carried by one, as my parents were too exhausted to do it themselves." He looked around the inn, and smiled. "We set up shop here, as close to the border as possible. Most of the citizens went in search of warmth, but Papa wanted to stay close. He always said that if the queen ever opened the borders again, he wanted to be able to go to her as soon as possible, to offer his services again."

Hans gaped at the man, his mug of ale suspended halfway to his mouth. "But she's a murderer!" he exclaimed. "She killed Prince Hans, and her sister!"

At that, Micah gave his a calculating look, and the sense of camaraderie that has built seemed to dissipate. "Everyone's got a right to defend themselves from harm," he finally said, standing up again. "And Papa always said, he'd never seen anyone grieve the way the queen did for Princess Anna."

\---

It took three days for Hans to find a guide into the Kingdom of Arendelle. The Sami were the only ones capable of finding their way in the constant blizzard, and in fact still maintained something of a life inside the Kingdom. Plenty of ice to go around.

The guide, a man who could have been even younger than he, didn't speak much as they made their way past the borders, pushing into the blizzard. They were tied together with a rope, and the guide's reindeer led the way, making a path through the steadily deepening snow.

For days they traveled through winds that shifted every few moments, snow whipping in their faces and freezing everything. They slept in the snow, huddled together for warmth, and Hans discovered that the three of them generated far more heat in these little dens than he had in his own private one. Any attempts to engage the other man resulted in short nods and shorter sentences.

It only got worse when they started to climb. When Hans realized they were heading to far up to be going to the Township, he pulled on the rope until the other man stopped.

"Where are we going?" he shouted, gesturing at the slope. "You're supposed to be taking me to the castle."

"I am," the guide shouted back. "But the castle you want isn't the one you think."

Hans had told the guide nothing about his reasons, simply plied the man with coin and asked to go to the Township. He'd hoped the guide would think he just wanted to raid the houses, something his older brother Edwin had suggested if all else failed. The man hadn't even asked, though, simply bit the coin and then told him they left in the morning.

He didn't even know the man's name. Suddenly, Hans was very, very worried, especially since there wasn't anything he could do now that he was out here in a blizzard with a total stranger. He hoped the guide wasn't planning on killing him for his things.

\---

Hans stumbled when they suddenly found themselves outside of the blizzard. The weather had been getting worse for days, although his grasp of time was thoroughly destroyed by this point. Then, suddenly, there was nothing.

Or rather, not nothing. A closer look revealed the storm still raged on, but was frozen, as if time had stopped. Snowflakes sat in the air, unmoving, and with a look of awe on his face Hans reached out and touched one. It clung to his mitten, so fragile and intricate, before it melded into the snow and ice already caked on it.

So enthralled was he, that it was several moments before he even noticed the castle. The gasp that tore from him resounded in the empty air.

"That's the castle you wanted," the guide said, shifting his hold on the reindeer. "You wanted to see the Queen, right?"

Hans nodded mutely, eyes incapable of tearing away from the glory in front of him. "How?" he whispered.

The guide laughed. "You can believe an entire country sunk into winter, but an ice castle is past your reckoning?"

A blush reached his cheeks. "When you put it like that," Hans muttered. "How did you know that I wanted to see her?"

With a shrug, the other man moved forward again. "Only reason anyone comes here anymore is to see her. Most try to kill her. Some to be killed." He looked back at the lordling following him. "Which are you?"

"I want to free Arendelle," Hans replied instantly. "I want to save this country."

"Who said it needed saving?"

\---

The guide pushed the door to the castle open and ushered Hans through. The reindeer was down below, reins loosely tied around the bannister of ice. The beast wouldn't have made any difference in a fight, but Hans still felt uneasy about leaving it behind. Three was better than two, after all.

Inside, the cavernous entryway was liberally filled with ice sculptures. He drew up to the nearest, studying the life size person it depicted.

The detail was incredible. The threads of the winter gear were visible, even, and the statue even had a faints scar on its cheek.

"The queen is very talented," Hans admitted quietly, going to look at another. This time a woman, dressed like a ranger, bow in hand. Her hair was sculpted as if it were blowing in the wind, and he wondered how she managed to get the individual strands of ice to not break.

"They're people," the guide said, skirting around them as he headed towards the staircase.

Hans rolled his eyes and followed the other man. "I know," he sniped.

"No. I mean they're actual people. Queen Elsa froze them."

Suddenly, it clicked, and Hans looked around in horror. "All of them?" he asked, his voice echoing off the icy walls.

The other man nodded. "Most came to kill her. Some to plead. Those who won't leave, she froze."

"Monster," Hans hissed, his hand reaching for the hilt of his sword. "She must be stopped."

A sigh was his only response. "Come on, she's waiting upstairs."

As they walked up the curved staircase, another figure came into view. Hans started when they drew closer. "It's you!"

The guide shook his head. "My father, actually. He used to bring me here all the time when I was a boy. Most of the ice harvesters do. He was probably the only one she could have called a friend."

"How do you not want to take her out yourself?"

The guide didn't respond, just pushed open the door his father's frozen body guarded.

She was inside. Settled on a simple, high backed chair, a young woman stared at him as Hans stepped inside. Her hair was so blonde it bordered on white, and was let loose around her shoulders. Her dress was blue, and thin, so that he couldn't help but wonder how she didn't freeze herself. Eyes the blue of a winter's sky held him, so that he could not help but step forward. Her pale skin seemed to glow with the light the ice provided. She looked as if she could not have aged a day since her coronation.

"Queen Elsa," the guide murmured, sinking to one knee.

"Andrew," the queen replied, and for a moment it seemed as if she would smile at him. Her face remained still, however, only her eyes moving to look at the guide. "It has been a while."

"I had to travel farther to sell the ice, this time," Andrew replied. "I found this one on my way back, at Micah's inn."

She turned her gaze back to Hans, who had found himself too paralyzed by the woman in front of him to move. "It's not often that a member of the royal family of the Southern Isles comes to my castle."

He startled, then. "How-"

"You look like him, a bit," the queen interrupted. "You noticed as well, Andrew?"

The other man nodded. "I've seen the corpse of Prince Hans, down at the Township. The likeness was too strong to be a coincidence, and then he was looking for a guide to the castle."

The queen laughed, then, and it was beautiful and sharp. "Here to kill me?" she asked Hans with a smile. "What's your name, boy?"

"I was named for my uncle," he replied, hesitantly. Somehow this wasn't going how he thought it would, although Hans realized now that he had no real plan to speak of upon arriving. "I am Hans, son of Duke Allard of House Morraine, of the Southern Isles."

"You even bear his name," the queen mused. "Some might call it fate, for you to defeat me. Shall you try?"

"I just want to free Arendelle," Hans said, a bit shakily. "It's all I've wanted, since I was a boy."

Queen Elsa stood suddenly, and stepped forward. "Arendelle is hostage to my grief," she said harshly, her eyes boring into those that were so familiar, even so many years later. "It has been since my sister sacrificed her life for mine, to stay your uncle's plot for my throne." Her hand darted out, grabbing his chin to force his face closer. "Do you think you can stop me? Do you think you can take anything more from me?"

He was no match for her. He could feel it in the icy fingers that held him, in the fierce despair she showed just a small sign of. "Is this what your sister would have wanted?"

With a noise of disgust, she shoved him away. "Why don't you ask her?"

It was only then that he spotted the statue. So taken was he with the queen, he hadn't even noticed the lone sculpture in the room.

Princess Anna was beautiful, even in her frozen defiance. Cloak billowing around her, one hand upstretched as the other was held backwards, as if to place someone behind her body as shield. "Did she really put herself between my uncle and you?"

"Yup!" a new voice declared, and Hans started. At that moment, a bit of orange caught his gaze, and to his amazement a small snowman toddled his way from behind a pillar. "Anna loved Elsa so much, she chose not to kiss Kristoff to save herself and stopped stupid Hans instead." The snowman waved a stick arm at Andrew. "Hi Kristoff!"

Andrew sighed. "Olaf, I'm not Kristoff, I'm his son. Andrew, remember?"

The snowman giggled. "Oops. Sorry about that! I forgot." He moved towards Hans. "Hi, I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs!"

Hans swayed. "What is going on?" he whispered, looking around. "Are you all mad?"

Queen Elsa shrugged with one shoulder before moving to her chair again. "Perhaps," she mused, her gaze drawn to the frozen statue of her sister. "No more than you."

Shaking, he drew his sword, and leveled it at the queen. "You must be stopped," Hans said, eyes wild. "This, this collection of souls must be set free. _Why_ won't you set them free?" He sobbed a little, then.

The queen sank into the chair. "Because I can't," she said wistfully, and for the first time something replaced the faint disdain on her face. As she looked at Princess Anna, despair crossed her visage, and it was so powerful that Hans staggered. It lasted for just a moment, though. "So if you'd like to try, by all means."

Hans took one step forward, then another. Queen Elsa did nothing, simply watched his approach.

At the last moment, he moved. But instead of attacking the queen, he whirled towards the statue. He'd never get near the queen, he knew that.

_If I free Princess Anna, I'll free them all._

_If I_ break _Princess Anna, I'll free them all._

_If I break Princess Anna, I'll break the_ queen.

_If I break the queen, I'll be free._

He felt the blast of cold hit, but it only staggered him. He could feel his limbs turning to ice, not fast enough. Not before he could swing his sword - the luck of his family, his eighteenth birthday present.

It shattered on Princess Anna's neck, not even scratching the ice.

As the pieces of steel fell, Hans froze.

\---

The tableau had changed not at all when Andrew returned, some months later. This time he was alone, as he preferred.

Queen Elsa was staring at Anna when he entered the room, as she usually did. Her gaze, now that no one but he could see it, was soft and full of anguish.

Hans was still there, hilt of a shattered sword still in his hand. His face was one of surprise, much like that of his uncle's. Prince Hans still lay on the ice of the fjord, limbs dangling downward as the icicle impaled him. He had frozen around it, a grisly reminder of that fateful day.

"Why do you leave him here?" Andrew asked, after he had knelt. "You always move the others downstairs."

Elsa hummed in thought. "He equalizes her. She was protecting me from nothing, all these years. Hand outstretched to stave off air." She waved a hand at the frozen lordling. "With him here, she has a purpose again." She gave a small laugh. "That's all Anna ever really wanted, was a purpose. To _do_ something." She hiccuped softly, betraying the tears she was fighting. "To be loved. Even in that, I failed her."

Andrew reached out, grabbing her hand in his. It was cool, but he was used to it. "Do you think," he asked slowly, looking at the scene as well. "If you were to die, would it set everyone free?"

"If it did," Elsa sighed, "Anna would never forgive herself for living while I died." She shook her head. "I will live with that burden, until someone manages to kill me." She looked up at him then, a small smile on her face. "Maybe you will succeed where Kristoff and I, where all the others have failed."

"I will do my best, my queen," Andrew swore. "I will search for a means, to the ends of the earth if I must."

Elsa stood, pulling her hand gently free from her companion's grasp. She strode to the statue that was her sister, and gently touched Anna's face. After a moment, she kissed her sister's cheeks, then her lips. "I love you," she whispered, before wrapping her arms around the frozen form, tears spilling down her cheeks and dusting them with snow.

Andrew saw himself out.

**Author's Note:**

> So, this happened. Stupid muse won't leave me alone sometimes, especially when I want/need to be working on something else. Grr.
> 
> I have NOT forgotten my other fic. Work has been brutal, I had a business trip, and the fluff keeps getting in the way. I'm fighting my own writing style on this, and it's driving me a bit mad, but I'll keep hammering at it.
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy this bit of weird crackfic I had stumbling in my brain.


End file.
